


Iron Man (Cinderella style)

by DragonRiderSisters



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Cinderella, Emotional Abuse, Evil Step-Mother, F/M, First Meetings, Natasha is Natalie - Freeform, Originally Posted on FanFiction.Net, Step-siblings, Steve is MIA, There are no Avengers, this is so cheesy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-26
Updated: 2019-12-22
Packaged: 2020-05-14 15:08:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 10,336
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19275811
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DragonRiderSisters/pseuds/DragonRiderSisters
Summary: Pepper has been made a servant to her own family with no escape in sight. But will a masquerade party at Stark Industries change her fate, especially when she meets the one himself? Now thrown into a dangerous world of secrets, spies, assassinations, betrayal, and corporate corruption, Pepper has to do everything in her power to protect the ones she loves.Originally Posted on FanFiction.Net on January 31st, 2015.





	1. Prologue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It was just another ordinary day for Pepper Potts. She has to wake up before the sun rises to make breakfast and lunch for her family, as well as do all of her morning chores, before heading off to work at Stark Industries as an accountant.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone!
> 
> So, fun fact! This story was actually the first story I'd ever published on FanFiction.Net ([dragonrider1234](https://www.fanfiction.net/u/5490981/)). While it wasn't the first story on the account, it was the first one I ever wrote and published myself (the others were written by my sister). When I first wrote the story...I don't know...4 years ago (oh my gosh)...I had just gotten into Marvel and had read another amazing Cinderella AU story for another fandom...and lets just say, things really fell into place from there.
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing. All rights to characters belong to Marvel Studios, and no profit is being made from this story. 
> 
> I don't want to say much else, other than enjoy this Prologue...

It was just another ordinary day for Pepper Potts. She has to wake up before the sun rises to make breakfast  _and_  lunch for her family, as well as do all of her morning chores, before heading off to work at Stark Industries as an accountant.

It wasn't always like this, though; she used to be the princess in her father's eyes, the crown jewel in his art collection. That is until he decided to marry again to Agatha, who both she and her father thought was the nicest woman they had ever met. Pepper's mom died due to childbirth, so she never knew her. Agatha also had two daughters, who are just Pepper's age, named Darla and Artemis.

However, darkness soon came upon the family when Pepper's father was diagnosed with cancer and died weeks later, leaving Pepper all alone. It was this untimely death that the stepmother's true nature appeared. She was very jealous of Pepper and all of her amazing talents and beauty. So she made Pepper a servant in her own home, forcing her to cook, clean, and organize the household after them. They would make her take care of the family business and have a second job at Stark Industries, yet they controlled all her money and rights so she could not run away. But why would she? The house was her home all of her life, and she has nothing outside its walls.

So that's where she is now: in the kitchen, cooking food that wouldn't feed a bird for her step-family and never knowing if her life would change.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is it short? Yes. Will I be uploading the next chapter soon? Potentially. 
> 
> I know that this isn't much, but I promise that the story will pick up soon. But if you want to check out the original story along with some other stories that haven't (or may not at all) been uploaded on this account yet, please check out my FanFiction.Net account. 
> 
> So, until next time...this is FD signing out.


	2. Life at Home and at Stark Industries

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! So sorry for the super short prologue, but here's chapter 1 to make up for that! Please also know that you can view the fully updated story on my FanFiction.Net account (link: [dragonrider1234](https://www.fanfiction.net/~dragonrider1234)). 
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing. All rights to characters and properties belong to Marvel Studios and Disney and no profit is being made from this story. 
> 
> Without further ado, please enjoy...

The kitchen is the first place Pepper goes to every morning. It's a medium-sized kitchen, with everything immaculate and organized, just the way Pepper likes it. Her first chore of the day is feeding the family lab and Persian cat. Lucky, the dog, and Sugar, the cat, were from her dad as a present on her 10th birthday. They always get along, so there are never any fights between the two animals. Agatha pretended to like the two creatures when she first arrived at the house, but after her father's death, Agatha wanted to get rid of them. However, Pepper pleaded, and Lucky and Sugar were able to stay, as long as they stay in the kitchen.

After feeding the two hungry pets, she begins making a small breakfast and lunch for her step-family. Their meals are strictly vegan, so Pepper has to be careful. Next, she makes her own breakfast and lunch and eats her breakfast quickly because...

"PEPPER!" Agatha's voice rings from an intercom nearby.

"Okay, I'm coming up now," Pepper exclaims into to intercom.

"Well hurry up, we are like totally starving," Darla groans.

"Yea," Artemis concurs with her sister.

Armed with one tray on each hand and one on her head, Pepper ascends the stairs and into each of her step-sisters' rooms. Darla is the first one, "Good morning Darla, did you sleep well?"

"Yeah, whatever, did you pack me my lunch, whole wheat bread right?" Darla asks as she takes her tray from Pepper.

"Of course I did."

"And don't forget to take the laundry!"

Pepper takes the basket full of dirty laundry and leaves the room. Next, she heads across the hall to Artemis's room. Out of the two sisters, Artemis is the most tolerable because she mostly follows her sister. But Artemis's looks make her a lot more like an adopted child. While Darla and Agatha both have brown hair and brown eyes and are tall and skinny, Artemis is blonde with stormy blue eyes and is a little shorter and chubbier. When Pepper opens the door, she places the tray onto Artemis's bed, stirring her out of her thoughts, "Good morning, Artemis."

"Morning. The laundry and donor's box are near the closet," Artemis mutters curtly as she eats her breakfast.

Without saying anything else, Pepper leaves the room after picking up the boxes and bin. Finally, Pepper walks to the end of the hallway, where the master bedroom is located. Balancing the tray, and the additional bins, Pepper opens the door and enters, "Good morning Agatha." Pepper had to call Agatha by her name instead of 'stepmother' because she once got beaten because of it and left the house with a huge red mark on her face. Needless to say, she learned her lesson very quickly.

"Well don't just stand there. Come on, I have much to do," Agatha grumbles as she inspects her nails on her bed. Pepper obeys and places the tray on the bed for Agatha before waiting for her to tell her what she needed to do. "Today, I want you to do the laundry and all of your normal chores. Tomorrow, I am having a small social gathering with some of my closest business partners. So after work, I need you to organize the back yard for the party."

"But I have a..." Pepper tries to say.

"Silence! You will do as I say, is that clear. Now there is one more thing you need to do. Make sure you tend the gardens. We gotta have the best, after all."

"Yes Agatha," says Pepper defeated. She leaves the room to do the laundry and finish off the rest of her morning chores. For the rest of the morning, Pepper had to rush around to help her step-family get ready for their day, along with cleaning the house, so that she can have time to work in the backyard tonight.

When Pepper finally manages to leave her house, she still had to stop by the donation center and the dry cleaners before getting to work. Her family didn't think she needed a fancy car, so the got her an old Toyota that barely goes over 50 miles per hour, but she manages to get to the Stark Industries main headquarters in the nick of time.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the main office of Stark Industries headquarters, Howard is looking over the beautiful city of Malibu. With a sigh, he turns around to address his partner, "Ah, Obadiah, it's good to see you again old friend. There is a matter of great importance that I need to discuss."

"And what would that be Howard?" Obadiah asks in curiosity.

"It's about my son."

"Tony?! That boy is a walking box of trouble that's ready to blow! What did he do this time?" Obadiah grumbles, remembering an "incident' at a conference. It wasn't pretty.

"I know that," Howard states calmly, resting his head on his hands, "but he is also the sole heir to the company. Eventually, he will have to take over. I can't take the stress anymore."

Obadiah feels a pang in his chest and sighs, "We already had this conversation Howard, is there anything different this time around?"

"As a matter of fact: _yes_ ," Howard stands up and walks around towards Obadiah, "I was thinking that we should hold a party and a big one. It can celebrate Stark Industries's big success with all of our business partners, sponsors, and we can even invite some high-level socialites. That way, we can let everyone know that Stark Industries is still going strong, and Tony can also meet some beautiful women."

"But sir, you do realize that your son is notorious for his one night stands. He is a playboy. He can never commit," Obadiah interrupts him.

"Yes, but maybe he will find someone. It's about time he marries, settles down, and possibly produce a new heir," says Howard wistfully, as he walks back to his chair.

"But what if he doesn't," asks Obadiah.

"I will have a talk with my son. You, on the other hand, will begin preparations for the event. Send out the invitations and such," Howard then turns around to face the city once again.

Obadiah sighs, knowing that the conversation is over, "Very well sir." But as Obadiah leave the room, he turns around, "but do you really think that Tony will even listen and go through with this plan?" Hearing no answer from Howard, he leaves the office to prepare the necessary invitations.

* * *

Pepper had just made it to the staff parking lot with only minutes to spare. After getting all of her stuff together, she rushes out of her car and enters the building. She signs-in and goes through all of the necessary security checkpoints, before finally getting to her cubicle. If anything, she was lucky to even get a job at Stark Industries because she only went to night time classes at a nearby university. Agatha wouldn't even pay for her college funds, making her work to be able to go to college. And, to make things worse, all of the college savings went to her step-sisters, who barely studied. All they did was party and, eventually, dropped out.

With only a bachelor's degree in economics, Pepper was able to get into Stark Industries because her family was one of the company's oldest stockholder and donor. Howard Stark and his family had often visited her family's art gallery and seen all the beautiful artworks before buying some at very high prices. However, when her father died, the art gallery lost a lot of money, so Agatha gave-up on running it, but Pepper kept it. Even though some of the biggest buyers don't come by anymore, it still gives a good income to the family.

Pepper does all of the work and business handling for the family, but Agatha and her stepsisters got all the glory and praise. In reality, they almost don't do any work at all, aside from signing a couple of documents. They partied and attended the art gallery auctions to meet some rich guys.

Pepper is then snapped out of her thoughts by her boss, who started to yell at her for dazing off, before giving her a mountain of work to organize, file, and deliver. Not wanting to get into any more trouble, she gets right to work. After looking at another order form for weapons and military gear, she started to have a migraine. In all honesty, looking at these order forms make her sick to her stomach, but what else could she do.

"Hey, you look like you're about to pass out."

Looking up, Pepper smiles at the sight of her best friend, Natalie Rushman, a fellow worker who Pepper met on Natalie's first day. Pepper was assigned to help Natalie learn how things work in this section of the company, and they became fast friends.

"Well, you know how I don't really like fighting and wars, so yeah," Pepper emphasizes by holding up the mountain of order forms.

"Well, how about we go get some lunch so you can relax and not have look at wars in the making."

"Sure, my lunch break is beginning now anyway," Pepper stands up and leaves her cubicle with Natalie.

In the lunchroom, Pepper and Natalie talked while eating their lunch. "So how's life at home with the wicked witch of the west and her two flying monkeys?" Natalie asks as she looks at her friend.

"Nat," Pepper says in a firm tone, "They may be harsh, but they are still my family."

"Yeah, even though they treat you like a slave."

Not wanting to stay on the topic, Pepper quickly asks, "So how's Steve? Have you heard anything from him?"

A look of shock and then sadness crosses Natalie's face as she looks at the ring on her fourth finger. The ring wasn't very big, but it means so much to Natalie, as it symbolizes her and Steve's love. After years of tribulations, Steve managed to propose to Natalie before being deployed to the Middle East.

"No, he's still missing," says Natalie sadly, which makes Pepper feel guilty and ashamed of pulling up that sensitive subject.

After what felt like hours of awkward silence, Pepper finally breaks it, "You know Steve would never leave you. He loves you too much to do that to you." Still seeing the look of sadness in her friend's eyes, she adds, "I'm sure that wherever he is, he'll fight tooth and nail to come back to you. Now, if only I can find someone like that, but that's never gonna happen."

With a small smile, Natalie looks up, "Don't be silly, you're an amazing person, Pepper. Any man would be crazy not to like you. Besides, out there is the right man for you. For all we know, he could be in this very building. Don't give up hope."

"Thanks, Nat. I needed that," realizing that their breaks are almost over, "We have to go back now. You gonna be okay?"

"Yeah. You?"

"Yeah. See ya later," giving each other a hug, they left the break room to continue their day.

* * *

The rest of the day was uneventful, with the majority of it being full of paperwork for Pepper. At five, her shift was over, and she could leave, but that doesn't mean she could relax. She still has a number of chores to do, including tending the garden for Agatha's party and setting up the party. Carrying her big bag of paperwork in one arm and her purse in the other, she runs into the elevator as it closes.

In the elevator, she takes out her phone to see a bunch of texts from her step-family, telling her to go by this and pick-up that. Adding those things to her checklist on her phone, while also going over any other chores she might've missed, she doesn't realize that the elevator didn't go to the parking garage; instead, it went up to another floor.

Tony and his best friend Rhodey had just left Tony's office at Stark Industries Headquarters and are planning to leave.

"I just don't understand what the big deal is. I mean, he is still young and kicking. Why do I need to settle down and find a wife when I am this young?" Tony complains, waving his hand around erratically.

"Well, you do need to settle down eventually. Who knows what might happen to your father," Rhodey helpfully supplies.

"But I don't want to," Tony whines, "I mean, come on, life's too short to settle down and have a kid and such."

"You're just worried that you would be like your father, aren't you?" Rhodey asks too knowingly.

"No, I just don't think that there is a woman out there for me," Tony states, but Rhodey could see through his words.

"Yeah, a woman who can deal with your giant ego and, hopefully, bring you down a notch or two," Rhodey quips.

Laughing, Tony lightly punches Rhodey's shoulder, thus starting an exchange of friendly punches. Then Rhodey says, "Hey, you never know. There's bound to be the woman of our dreams somewhere."

When they got to the elevator, and the doors opened, Tony collides with a person hastily leaving, causing the said person to drop his/her bags and falling on top of Tony. When the dust finally cleared, Tony sees one of the most beautiful women he has ever met lying on top of him. When the woman looks up, she and Tony shared an intense look for some time, but are then interrupted by Rhodey, "Hey, we are so sorry, ma'am," as he tries to help Pepper up. However, Tony beats him to it and grabs her hand to help her up after she got off of him.

Once again, their eyes meet, and they stayed like that for a couple of seconds before Pepper realizes who she fell on. Pulling her hand away from his warm ones, she embarrassingly exclaims, "Oh, no! I'm sorry. I didn't know that the elevator isn't going to the garage, and I am so sorry for running into you Mr. Stark..."

Before she could continue her rambling, Tony stops her, "Hey, first of all, my name is Tony, _not_ Mr. Stark, and it was no problem." This surprised both Pepper and Rhodey.

An awkward silence takes over and is only broken by Rhodey, again, "So you said that you were heading down to the garage right?"

"Yeah, the staff garage," Pepper answers swiftly, refusing to look at Tony.

"Well, why don't we all go down? That's where Tony and I were going, right Tony?" Rhodey asks as he breaks Tony out of his trance.

"Hm, oh yeah, we were." Realizing that Pepper has all of her stuff on the ground, "Oh, but let me help you with that."

Together, the three of them manage to gather all of Pepper's loose paper, and they all go into the elevator. The ride down is very uncomfortable, especially for Rhodey, who has to stand between Pepper and Tony. The two of them don't even look at each other, but there are times where they would sneak glances at each other when the other isn't looking.

When the elevator finally reaches the staff parking lot, Pepper steps out, but Tony stops her, "Hey, wait! In a couple of weeks, there's gonna be a masquerade party of some sort," looking a little nervous under Pepper's curious gaze, he spits out, "do you want to come?"

Looking surprised for what felt like the millionth time that day, Pepper is about to answer, but remembers her step-family, "I would love to, but I can't. I, uh, have a lot of work to do," seeing the disappointed look in Tony's eyes almost makes her heartbreak, "I'm so sorry, but thank you for the invitation." Before she could see his reaction, she leaves as quickly as she can.

In her car, Pepper collapses into the driver's seat, flustered and embarrassed, chiding herself for acting like a fool in front of the Tony Stark. But what really got her is how handsome he is up close and how warm his hands were on hers.

 _'Stop it, Pepper!'_ she shakes her head. Pepper knew that Tony is a billionaire that is in line for the company ownership and wouldn't even want to look at a meager  _worker_ like herself. Besides, he is infamous for his line of heartbreaks, and she couldn't do that to herself right now.

Back on the elevator with Tony, Rhodey is chuckling after the doors closed, "Heh, nice work Romeo."

"What do you mean, I was..." Tony starts.

"You seem to be acting like a shy, love-struck, school-boy," Rhodey bursts into laughter at his friend's face.

"No, I wasn't," Tony pouts.

"Yeah, whatever man, but here's the thing, you didn't ask for her name."

"Damn it."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! And I am so so sorry for my cheesy/cringy writing. 15-year-old me was still learning the ropes of effective writing lol.
> 
> Edit: After posting chapter 2, I went back and made some changes to the prologue and chapter 1. Hopefully, this makes the story more bearable to read lol.


	3. The Days That Follow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> At the Malibu mansion of the Stark family, Tony was in his own private lab, tinkering with a mechanical iron suit of some sort, he didn't decide yet. However, his thoughts aren't even anywhere near his inventions. Instead, they were on the mysterious woman on the elevator, all he could think about were her blue eyes and beautiful strawberry blond hair.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! I'm back with chapter 2!!
> 
> So I just want to let everyone know that updates for this story will be potentially even more spaced out given my new update schedule for the rest of summer and into the next semester of the new school year. As for this chapter itself, I don't want to say too much other than we're going to learn a bit more about Pepper's situation at home and take a glimpse into Tony's side of the story as well. 
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing. All rights to characters and properties belong to Marvel Studios and Disney and no profit is being made from this story.
> 
> And so, with all that said, please enjoy...

After leaving the garage, Pepper did everything her step-family threw at her, even going to the supermarket, only to go back to it 30 minutes later to pick up something else. Every day is like that for Pepper, and she couldn't do anything about it. By the time she got home, Pepper is close to passing out from exhaustion. But she still has plenty of work to do, and she thanks her lucky stars that her step-family is out and most likely won't be home till hours later.

After putting all of her purchased items away and organizing the paperwork in her office, she headed to her back yard where a garden needs to be tended and a patio needs to be set up for the party tomorrow. With Lucky and Sugar to keep her company, she does her work with her favorite music playing in the background and happy yips from Lucky to accompany it.

* * *

At the Malibu mansion of the Stark family, Tony is in his own private lab, tinkering with a mechanical iron suit of some sort, he couldn't decide yet. However, his thoughts aren't even anywhere near his inventions. Instead, they are on the mysterious woman on the elevator. All he could think about are her blue eyes and beautiful strawberry blond hair. He is still angry with himself for not asking for her name, and he complained about it throughout the entire time he hung-out at the bar with Rhodey. Being sick of it, Rhodey decided to end the day early and dropped off Tony at his mansion.

When he got home, he headed straight to his lab, in hopes of clearing up his head, but so far it hadn't. All he knew about this woman, aside from her physical features, is that she works at Stark headquarters. He wanted to access the employee payroll to try to find her, but his old friend, Bruce Banner, doesn't think that it is a good idea. He thinks that it would take a long time and that it would make him look like a stalker.

Being the wiser of the two, Bruce was always there for Tony to guide him, whether it be with complicated experiments or issues with his own family. Bruce was even there to console Tony when his mother died. They are a strong team in the lab and are even dubbed by Tony as the Science Bros. However, when Bruce left to go home, Tony decided to still follow through with the plan, but the payroll doesn't have pictures with them. Not giving up, he tried accessing the employee roster to find the woman, only to find out that he isn't allowed in.

"What the hell! How am I not allowed into the employee roster!?" Tony yells at the screen, "This is ridiculous!"

He wants to try hacking into the computer mainframe, but he knows that if his father found out, he would be banned from any access to a computer for a while. What scares him is that his father could do that, and the last time that happened was not a time he wants to remember. Shuddering at that thought, he decides to not do it and just hope that he sees the woman soon. With that resolve, he goes back to his tinkering, not knowing that across the city, Pepper couldn't keep her mind off of him either.

* * *

Pepper had just finished setting up the backyard for the party and was ushering Lucky and Sugar inside when she hears the front door open and her step-sisters entering noisily. They seem to be arguing once again over a cute man, but Pepper doesn't really care. She goes to the front door to greet them, but, instead, she is greeted by Darla's designer purse to her face. Then Agatha steps in and throws her purse at Pepper as well, "Pepper, be a dear a take our bags upstairs. Our legs are killing us," Agatha crows too sweetly as she, Darla, and Artemis go to the living room to sit. Looking at the piles of shopping bags, Pepper starts organizing the bags by who they belong to. She had learned a long time ago how to tell the difference between the three, so doing it is a breeze.

On her third trip down the stairs to get the rest of the bags, Artemis sticks her head out of the living room, "Hey Pepper, where's our dinner?" she says, trying to sound bossy.

"It will be done soon, I'll get started as soon as I'm done with these bags."

"Tell her to hurry up, we're starving!" Darla yelled from the living room.

Artemis turns towards Pepper, but Pepper held up her hand, "I know."

"Thank-you," Artemis says just above a whisper, before heading back to the living room.

The normal routine for dinner is that Pepper makes dinner for her step-family first, and then her's. Then she could either eat with them in the dining room or eat in the kitchen. After a while, she learns that she is blatantly ignored if she ate with her step-family, so she prefers eating in the kitchen with Lucky and Sugar at her feet. Afterward, she, of course, has to clean the table and the dishes. Then it's cleaning the house and finishing the paperwork for both the art gallery and Stark Industries, all while staying away from her step-family and not bothering them.

That night, after all the work is done, Pepper is finally able to go to sleep, curled up on her hard mattress, with Sugar watching over her. And as sleep took hold of her hectic mind, a peaceful dream of herself in Tony's arms danced across her mind.

* * *

The next day, Pepper doesn't go to Stark Industries because it's a Sunday, and she doesn't work on these days. However, she still has to work for Agatha and put the final touches on the small social party, such as prep the food and put-up some more decoration, all under her stepmom's critical eye. As she helps her sisters into impossibly small dresses for the party, Agatha gives her some final instructions, "You are to stay clear of the backyard, I don't want your hideous looks tainting my gathering, and you are to never speak to anyone unless I give you permission to. Also, you cannot leave the house, in case we might need you."

"Yes Agatha," Pepper mumbles silently.

"Good," she then turns to her two daughters in their full outfit, "You girls look absolutely precious, now..."

Pepper didn't listen to the rest because she's heading towards the kitchen and backyard to recheck everything to make sure they're all in place. In no time the first guests begin to arrive, and Artemis is there to greet them and point them in the right direction. Not having much else to do, Pepper heads to her room to relax. In her room, her cell phone vibrates, and when she picks it up, she sees a text from Nat. Natalie wanted to know if she's available and if she wanted to hang out. Sighing sadly, she texts back, saying that she is under house arrest and can't leave. With that, they text back and forth, and Pepper fills in the small space of her room with laughter. Later, she hears a scratching sound from the door and opens it to find Lucky and Sugar, both wanting to join her, so she let them in.

An hour or so later, Pepper goes out of her room to do some dusting, now that everyone is outside attending the party. Laughter and talking could be heard from the backyard as she works quietly, humming a tune as she goes. Suddenly, she hears a knock come from the front door. With no one to hear it over the loud noise, she decides to open the door herself. Expecting a guest, she is surprised to find a delivery man standing there with a big envelope in his hands.

"Hello there ma'am, is this the Potts's residence?"

"Y-yes," Pepper answers.

"Well this is an invitation for the family from Stark Industries, please give it the head of the residence, " the delivery man, whose name was Kevin according to his name tag, says as he hands her the envelope.

"Thank-you."

"I suggest you open it right away. Heard that it's urgent," with that Kevin leaves, and Pepper closes the door.

If it's an invitation, Pepper is supposed to give it to Agatha, and since the delivery man says that it's urgent, she decided to give it to Agatha right away. So quietly, she sneaks into the party, avoiding all the guests as quickly as she could. When she found Agatha talking to her two daughters, she is about to intervene, when Agatha sees her, "Pepper! I told you to stay away..."

But Pepper interrupts Agatha, "But this invitation just came in from Stark Industries..."

"STARK?!" Darla and Artemis screech as they try to grab the invitation from each other. This grabs the attention of the other party guests as they gathered around the family.

"I'll take that," Agatha says firmly as she takes some rumpled tickets out of the big envelope, along with a strange, small device. Seeing a small switch, Agatha flicked the device on, and a hologram projection of the invitation appears in the air. Written letters then appear, spelling out the message for all to see,

_You're Invited!_

_To the Stark Industries first ever Masquerade Ball_

_Celebrating our great success in the past year._

_The Stark family will be attending as well._

_Date: This Friday_

_Time: 8:30 pm_

_Location: Stark Mansion -10880 Malibu Point, Malibu, California._

_You can only enter by presenting a ticket at the front door._

Soon, the message disappears back into the device, and the guests erupt with congratulations to the family. While everyone is too busy talking and gossiping, Pepper slips back inside to tell Natalie about the invitation.

That night, no one could sleep. They are all excited about the upcoming ball and are already making plans in preparation for it. All except for Pepper, "But Agatha, why can't I come? I mean, the invitation came with four tickets."

"But sweetie, you'll be too busy with work to be able to come. And besides, there are only three tickets, you must have miscounted dear. Now run along while my daughters and I work. We have much to do," she turns away and goes into Darla's room to discuss their plans.

Later, Pepper finds some strange paper in her paper shredder and sees that it's the missing ticket. In tears, she throws the useless pieces of paper into the trash and runs to her room. As she lays in her bed sobbing, her two pets come in and close the door. Lucky crawls over and lays beside Pepper, and Sugar once again perches near the window. As the night wore on, Pepper eventually fell asleep with her only family left in the world.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't worry Pepper! Help is on the way!
> 
> I know that this chapter is pretty much filler, but in the next chapter, things will really pick up then!
> 
> Thanks so much for reading! Until next time!
> 
> ~FD


	4. Get Ready

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For the rest of the week, Pepper continues living her life as if nothing had happened. Natalie never brought up the topic about the ball or the ticket again, but Pepper could tell that she is planning something. Her suspicions increased when she asked her for her dress and shoe sizes and the fact that she constantly has a smirk on her face whenever Pepper is around. Never the less, Pepper doesn't question her friend, and all is normal in her world. However, that doesn't mean that things are any easier.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey there readers!
> 
> Oh boy, let me tell you...this chapter was a beast to edit. Apparently, my past self really loved commas and the past-tense haha. However, while editing, I did try to maintain the original storyline structure of this chapter, changing only some lines and/or adding/taking out some others. The editing is just to make the reading more bearable. 
> 
> That said, on to this chapter, and it's a big one. I don't want to say too much, so please enjoy...

It's Pepper's break time the next day, and she is waiting for Natalie to join her in the break room. Since yesterday's ticket incident, Pepper had been in a very downcast mood. She wanted to talk to Natalie, but the other woman wouldn't pick up her phone, and Pepper didn't have the time to look for her before work. When Natalie finally comes into the break room, Pepper immediately notices how tired she looks and how red her eyes are. She immediately knows that Natalie has been crying. Wanting to comfort her friend, Pepper approaches her and gives her a comforting hug before leading her to their secluded table away from prying eyes.

After a tense moment of silence, Pepper finally speaks up, "Is it about Steve again?" even though she already knows the answer.

"Yes," Natalie utters in a hoarse voice, "They still couldn't find him, and it's been nearly two months." A few tears escape, but Natalie is quick to wipe them away and turns towards Pepper, a forced smile hastily plastered on, "So, are you excited for the ball? I got myself a ticket because a friend of mine isn't going. We can go together and..."

"Nat!" Pepper intervenes before Natalie could go on, obviously seeing the change in topic, "You know I'm here to listen if..."

"I know, Pep," Nat stops her and wipes the last of her tears away. 

Not wanting to hurt her friend anymore, Pepper decides to go along with the change, "I can't go to the ball."

"What!? Why!? Wait, let me guess, it has something to do with Agatha and her minions," Natalie pinches the bridge of her nose and seethes, her previous misery replaced with anger.

Not even caring about the way Natalie talked about her family, Pepper tells her all about the shredded ticket, and by the end of the story, she has to almost restrain Natalie because she looked as if she was about to personally hunt down her step-family herself.

"Nat, _please_ , it's not worth it," Pepper begs as she pulls Natalie back to her chair.

"How can you keep defending them when all they do is ruin your life?" Natalie looks to her friend in clear bewilderment.

"Because they're still my family."

"Well, they certainly don't treat you like one."

"Nat," Pepper says with a warning tone.

"Fine, well if you're not going, the I'm not," Natalie declares defiantly.

"No, don't do this Nat," Pepper sighs, exhaustion evident in her tone, "I don't want to be the reason you're not going. You deserve this more than me, especially with everything going on. Besides, Agatha would most likely have a mountain of work for me that night and not allow me to have you over anyway."

"But..."

"No Nat, _please_ ," Pepper implores, wanting to end the conversation.

"But what about Tony, don't you want to see him?"

"He probably forgot about me. It's not worth it," with that, Pepper leaves to get back to work. And Natalie could only watch her friend walk away sadly. Then; Natalie gets an idea, and with a little bit of planning, she leaves the break room with a smirk on her face. If it's the last thing she does, she'll make sure that her friend has the time of her life.

* * *

If only Pepper knew that Tony didn't forget about her, not by a long shot. Instead, he started to hang around the lower floors of Stark headquarters, trying to see if he can find her. However, he never could. This went on for the first couple of days until Tony had to stop and work on getting ready for the ball. His two best friends, Bruce and Rhodey, notice Tony's odd behaviors and are worried about him. Hoping for some answers and to cheer their friend up, they take him to a small, local bar. But Tony still remains morose, even when a beautiful waitress flirted with him. He simply looks out the window with a despondent look.

Not standing this any longer, Rhodey slammed his bottle down on the counter, "Alright man, what has happened to you? Why are you like this... this..." the man gestures to his friend's slouched form in exasperation.

"Yeah. You've moved on from other women quicker than this," Bruce adds, putting down his small can as well.

Facing his friends, Tony replies sullenly, "But she's not just any other woman. I mean... she was special...different," he then turns back to the window and watches a young couple walk out of the driveway of the bar, "We had this spark. Now I know that is crazy and scientifically impossible, but I think she felt it too."

"Man, if a huge musical number starts right now, one would say that this is a Disney musical or something," Rhodey chuckles as he downs his beer.

"You know, now that you mention it, with everything that's happening, it feels like we are in some kind of romantic drama or something," Bruce jokes.

Meanwhile, Tony barely pays any attention to their conversation. All he could think about is his situation. He had decided to give up when it was obvious that he wasn't going to ever find that mystery woman. However, he feels like maybe this ball might be his chance to either move on or see her again. He doesn't know which it will be, but he's hoping for the latter.

* * *

For the rest of the week, Pepper continues living her life as if nothing had happened. Natalie never brought up the topic about the ball or the ticket again, but Pepper could tell that she is planning something. Her suspicions increased when she asked her for her dress and shoe sizes and the fact that she constantly has a smirk on her face whenever Pepper is around. Never the less, Pepper doesn't question her friend, and all is normal in her world. However, that doesn't mean that things are any easier. 

Any free time she has, she's forced to take Agatha, Darla, and Artemis shopping to get ready for the ball. Pepper gives her honest opinions when they ask her, but only Artemis actually seems to listen. Pepper is mostly there to help carry their bags of products and clothes. Buying the masks, however, was tricky, so they ended up having them custom-made. Pepper honestly doesn't know how much they'd spent for this one event, but she is dreading looking at their receipts.

After a particularly huge shopping spree, Agatha, Darla, and Artemis stumble into their home noisily, leaving Pepper to carry in all their bags, and head straight to the living room. When Pepper steps back downstairs to get the last of the bags, she overhears a part of her step-family's conversation.

"I'm just saying, don't you think it's a little cruel that we are making her stay home? I mean, we didn't even buy her anything from the mall," Artemis says with pity laced in her voice.

"Are you serious?! She would seriously like embarrass us in front of all those people, the cameras, and the Stark family," Darla retorts indignantly.

"She's right dear. Pepper isn't born of high society like we were. A daughter of a small-name artist doesn't belong at a party full of such influential people. And besides, she doesn't need new clothes. It's not like she needs to impress anyone," Agatha puffs haughtily before Artemis could intervene.

"Like anything would look good on her anyway," Darla starts laughing, and Artemis hesitantly joins in.

None of them knew that Pepper heard everything and was hurt by their words. Over the years, Pepper had gotten some-what used to their jabs and insults, but they still hurt, especially if they involved her father. Brushing away the last of her tears, she continues her chores and makes dinner, pretending as if all was well in the world.

* * *

_The Day of the Masquerade Ball_

At Stark headquarters, all the employees are gossiping about the upcoming ball. Natalie seemed very excited about the event as well, and Pepper thought that it was because she is actually going. Little did she know, Natalie has something else planned for that night.

In preparation for the party, Pepper helps her step-family put on their selected attire. Agatha went with a red gown with black laces on the bodice and matching jewelry, high heels, and a red shawl. Darla has on a daringly short, teal cocktail dress that hugs her figure tightly and has no straps and an open back. She is obviously trying to impress Tony, and with all her accessories on, Pepper has to admit that she is gorgeous. Artemis went with a more simpler, but still beautiful, pink dress with a small train behind her. She made up for her dress's simplicity by wearing some jewelry and adding more accessories. Soon, all three members of her step-family are ready for their night out.

"Now, Pepper, you are to have no friends over, and you need to finish your chores as well as the paperwork on your desk," Agatha orders as they prepare to leave, "When I come home, I don't want to find you gone, and I expect all the work to be done. You hear me, dear?"

"Yes Agatha," Pepper replies meekly, handing her her small handbag as Agatha steps into the limo alongside her daughters. All the guests coming to the party were sent limos to take them to the ball.

"We'll be back at one in the morning." With that, the driver closes the door. Tipping his cap at Pepper, he gets into the driver's seat and drives her step-family to the ball.

After seeing them leave the driveway and out of sight, Pepper heads inside to begin her chores. She had just finished cleaning the kitchen and washing Lucky and Sugar, when the doorbell rang. Wondering who it could be at this hour, she opens the door to find Natalie standing there, smiling at her brightly.

"Nat? What are you...?" Pepper is about to ask, but Natalie just walks in and turns to face Pepper.

"Well, hurry up and get your stuff! We don't have all night. Come on, let's go," she says impatiently as she pulls her friend inside.

"What?! Wait, hold-up. What's going on Nat?" Pepper plants her feet on the ground with her hands on her hips.

Giving her an exasperated look, Nat answers, "You're going to the ball silly, or did you forget?"

"The ball?" Pepper is beyond confused, "How can I go to the ball? I have a lot of work to do, I don't have a ticket or a dress..."

"I've taken care of all that. Don't worry. You can trust me. Now hurry up and let's go, I'll explain on the way. And don't worry about finding a dress, I've got it covered," Natalie then waits impatiently for Pepper to get ready. When she comes down the stairs with her purse, Natalie drags her to her car, shoves her in the passenger seat, and quickly drives off.

"Do you mind telling me now, about your brilliant plan?" Pepper asks after a few seconds of awkward silence.

Sighing, Natalie complies, "Fine. I can't stand the thought that your step-family is doing all of this to you and the fact that you're not doing anything about it. So I took matters into my own hands, and I'll make sure that you get to that ball."

"But what about the paperwork?"

"I'll take care of it for you, no worries," Natalie says shrugging.

"But aren't you going, I mean.." however, she is cut off when the car pulls over in front of a small dress shop. "Where are we?"

"We're at my friend's dress shop, now come on," Natalie then drags Pepper inside. Entering the shop, they are greeted by a woman with long black hair and looks to be about a little older than them.

"Hey Betty, this is my friend, Pepper Potts," Natalie gestures towards Pepper, "And Pepper, this is Betty Ross Banner."

"Pleasure to meet you. Natalie has told me much about you," Betty says kindly as she shakes Pepper's hand and pulls her into a hug.

"Oh, well, the pleasure is all mine, but do you mind telling me what all of this is about?" Pepper asks, still a little lost.

Laughing, but then realizing the time, Betty pulls both Natalie and Pepper to the changing rooms, "Oh my, we need to get ready _now._ Come on!"

Together, the three women enter the back dressing room, and Betty hands Pepper a bag, along with the dress on a hanger. The dress is covered with a bag, so it's not visible. Pepper looks at everything being handed to her, but makes no movements to change or do anything. "I can't accept all of this, I don't have the money to pay you back, and..."

"Don't be ridiculous. I'm paying for the dress and everything with it," Natalie says promptly, "Now hurry-up!"

Complying to her friend's wishes, Pepper goes into the changing room and, after a couple of minutes, Pepper steps back out. She's now wearing a sleek blue dress with two spaghetti straps and a fancy belt. With matching silver heels, Pepper approaches her friends shyly. Betty and Natalie squeal with delight, and Betty waltzes around Pepper, checking her handiwork. After a minute of putting on a small necklace and other jewelry, Betty notices something, "Hmm, we seem to be missing something. Your arms are a little bare, and I don't have any gloves left..."

"Wait," Natalie interrupts her and dashes out front. Soon, she comes back with a box in her hands. Inside the box is a small silver bracelet with intricate designs of flowers around it and a heart at its center.

Gasping in surprise, Pepper looks up at Natalie with wonder in her eyes, "I-I can't believe you still have this."

"Of course I still have it. Isn't the reason you gave it to me in the first place was to keep it safe?"

Pepper remembers now, giving Natalie the bracelet to for safekeeping. It's her father's most prized possession for it belonged to her mother. When he died, Agatha sold nearly everything that belonged to her mom and dad, but she couldn't part with the bracelet. So she hid it to the best of her abilities, but after a couple of years, it became too risky, so she gave it to Nat, trusting her to keep it safe.

Laughing at her friend's surprised face, Nat slips the bracelet on her arm. Looking at the shining band of silver, Pepper couldn't hold it in anymore. She embraces Natalie, crying with tears of happiness. Pulling her away, Natalie wipes Pepper's tears away lovingly, "Dry those tears Pepper, you can't go to the ball looking like that."

"She's right," Betty jumps in, having been silently watching the touching moment. Quickly pulling Pepper to a small vanity desk, Betty and Natalie did her make-up and put her hair up in an elegant bun.

Then a thought came to Pepper, "Hey Nat, you forgot that I still don't have a ticket."

"That's why you are taking mine," Natalie snorts, while helping Betty with Pepper's hair, "I got mine from Betty here 'cause she'd rather spend time with her husband."

Betty hums in confirmation, but focuses on the pins in Pepper's hair.

Finally, Pepper is ready.

While they are admiring their finished work, the three ladies hear someone entering the shop, "Honey, I'm back!"

"Bruce, I'm back here! You can come in!" Betty calls back to her husband.

Bruce enters the dressing room, "Is there a party I'm missing out on?" he asks with a gentle laugh.

"Haha, very funny," Betty replies before giving him a quick kiss, "but speaking of parties, Pepper here needs a ride to Stark's ball." Betty then indicates Pepper, and she and Bruce shake hands and exchange greetings.

"So, if you want to head to the party, first off, you need a mask," Bruce states. Betty realizes her mistake and hands Pepper her fancy mask that matched her dress. It has a flowery design on it and covers most of the top part of her face, though her bright blue eyes can still be seen. Bruce gives his approval and guides Pepper to his car. Before she enters the car, she turns around and gives both Betty and Natalie a hug.

"Thank you so much. How could I ever repay you?" Pepper asks Natalie.

"First off, take the ticket," Natalie hands Pepper her ticket, "and secondly, when you marry Tony, can I be your maid of honor?"

Blushing, Pepper lightly shoves her friend, "Don't get too far ahead of yourself now. Tony might have forgotten about me."

"No he wouldn't," giving each other one last hug, and after Pepper tells Nat that she has to be home at midnight, Pepper heads off to the ball. She doesn't know what to expect, but she has a feeling that it was going to be  _magical._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Like it? Hate it? Was it good? Cringy? Let me know down below. 
> 
> Until the next chapter!
> 
> ~FD


	5. At the Ball

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Neither Pepper nor Bruce really know what to say to each other, considering they just met minutes before. Bruce then decides to turn on the radio to ease the silence, and Pepper lets out a breath of slight relief, as the silence was becoming slightly unbearable.
> 
> Bruce steals a glance at the rearview mirror and examines the silent woman sitting in the back. He then remembers something he heard Natalie and Pepper said earlier:
> 
> "and secondly, when you marry Tony, can I be your maid of honor?"
> 
> "Don't get too far ahead of yourself now, Tony might have forgotten about me."
> 
> Those words got Bruce thinking for a while. Part of him wonders if Pepper is an unfortunate one-night stand of Tony who's trying to reconnect with him, and a spike of pity for the poor woman, But he doesn't want to assume, he decides to find out more from Pepper, "So, do you know Tony Stark, miss?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heya readers! Sorry for the serious delay, but fall semester had been a lot harder on my writing schedule than I'd originally thought lol. But, winter break is here, and that means no more excuses. So here is the next updated chapter. 
> 
> Please note, I ended making quite a bit of change to this chapter (maybe even moreso than previous ones haha) but the main story flow should still be the same. Though, if there's an error or something doesn't make sense, definitely let me know (politely) in the comments!
> 
> With that, please enjoy!

Neither Pepper nor Bruce really know what to say to each other, considering they just met minutes before. Bruce then decides to turn on the radio to ease the silence, and Pepper lets out a breath of slight relief, as the silence was becoming slightly unbearable.

Bruce steals a glance at the rearview mirror and examines the silent woman sitting in the back. He then remembers something he heard Natalie and Pepper said earlier:

" _and secondly, when you marry Tony, can I be your maid of honor?"_

_"Don't get too far ahead of yourself now, Tony might have forgotten about me."_

Those words got Bruce thinking for a while. Part of him wonders if Pepper is an unfortunate one-night stand of Tony who's trying to reconnect with him, and a spike of pity for the poor woman, But he doesn't want to assume, he decides to find out more from Pepper, "So, do you know Tony Stark, miss?"

Pepper snaps out of her reverie and faces Bruce in the driver seat, "You can say that. He is kind of my boss since I work at Stark Headquarters."

"Really? At what position?"

"I'm just an accountant," Pepper says meekly.

Bruce smiles reassuringly, even though Pepper can't likely see it, "That's good. Do you like working there?"

"Eh, I kinda have mixed feelings. The pay is good, but the work-load is hell."

Bruce has to chuckle, but something else is on his mind. "So, have you ever met Tony in person before?"

Pepper is about to answer, but they have arrived at the Stark Mansion, and the bustling of the traffic and lights immediately steal their attention. Well, mostly Pepper's. The magnificence of the mansion takes her breath away, and she couldn't take her eyes off of the spectacular feat of modern architecture. The mansion hugs the edge of the cliff almost precariously, and it looks like something right out of a futuristic sci-fi world. The entire building is lit up with hundreds of lights, along with streamers decorating the entry-way and balloons floating idly in their place. There are cars and limos everywhere, and people are either milling around the entrance or strutting inside with as much regalness and glam as their dazzling appearances can showcase.

Bruce navigates and leads Pepper to the front entrance, which is, unfortunately, full of paparazzi and people.

Pepper is nervous about the flashing lights and is hesitant about getting out of the car, suddenly feeling so drab and unimpressive as compared to everyone else. "Isn't there a back entrance or something?"

Bruce grimaces, mentally smacking himself for not taking her to the private entrance closer to the lab. "It's too late now, they've seen us already." Wanting to reassure her, he quickly adds, "But don't worry about them. Just look straight ahead and keep walking. You'll be fine. Now I can't pick you up at midnight, but I think Natalie could. Did you set your alarm on your phone?"

"Yes I did," Pepper nods and then turns to face Bruce, "Thank-you. I don't know how I can ever repay any of you guys for tonight."

"Just have fun," Bruce smiles at her kindly. As Pepper exits the car, Bruce yells out, "Good luck!" to which she nods in affirmation before closing the door. 

After immediately leaving the car, Pepper is bombarded with camera flashes, and reporters asking her questions. Feeling glad that her mask is on and gripping her small handbag with her ticket and phone, Pepper walks as confidently as she could down the walkway towards the doors at the other end. On the way, she passes by other guests who're either talking to the reporters, posing for pictures, or talking to each other. Distracted by the opulent display before her, she bumps into an old man with glasses ( _Stan Lee),_ and quickly apologizes, "I'm so sorry sir."

"Eh, it's okay young lady. Have a good night," the man says with a bright, knowing smile before turning back to his group of young women.

Straightening up, Pepper walks to the front doors without any other problems. When she got to the entrance, a security guard asks for her ticket and name. Pepper hands over her ticket and tells him last name. The guard lets her in after checking his list, only slightly confused since the Potts family had supposedly already arrived, but he shrugs it off. Pepper lets out a sigh of relief and heads inside.

The mansion's interior is equally as impressive as its outside. Pepper has to congratulate the decorating team for their amazing work, as everything looks stylish and tasteful, while also screaming wealth. Not exactly wanting to head back into the crowds, she decides to look around in the front hallway for a little while before heading into the fray.

One specific picture frame grabs her attention. It's a family portrait of the Stark family. In the armchair is, who Pepper guesses, Howard Stark, and the woman standing next to him on the right is most likely Mrs. Stark, his late wife. The only other person in the portrait is a young boy, whose face is full of joy as he sits on his father's left knee. Smiling at the young boy's joyful face, Pepper hopes that she could make Tony smile like that again someday.

* * *

In the main room of the mansion that's been set up as the ballroom, the party is in full swing as the brunette DJ blasts the latest hits, while also rocking out with another young, blonde man by his side. Guests are still trickling in and some are already on the dance floor. All are waiting for the arrival of the Stark family.

However, in Tony's room, he isn't at all excited nor ready for the ball, and Rhodey sighs in exasperation.

"I'm just saying, you don't have to be in a permanent relationship with any of these girls. You could hook-up with one of them and then break things off later on," Rhodey suggests at a moping Tony, who is still not fully dressed for the ball. As soon as the lieutenant colonel says those words, he cringes at himself, not believing that he just suggested that. While he doesn't approve of Tony's...eh..."lifestyle choices", he is still a full-grown adult, capable of making his own decisions. This is why he's also silently cursing Howard Stark.

"But isn't that the entire point of the party? My dad is literally shoving every available woman at me, hoping that I'll just find _the one_ ," Tony says tersely, trying to put on his tie but is too frustrated and pissed off to do so properly.

Grabbing the ends of the tie, Rhodey helps him while also saying worriedly, "You're not usually like this. What's wrong Tony? You know you can tell me anything. Both Bruce and I are your friends."

"Yeah, and Bruce shows me that by taking his wife on an exotic vacation out of the country while I'm suffering."

"Tony," Rhodey utters tiredly, "Can you at least enjoy the party? It is still a celebration of Stark Industries' success."

"Fine, but I'm not going to like it," Tony pouts exaggeratedly, jutting out his lower lip like a wounded puppy.

"Very well then. At least now you will have to be my wingman," Rhodey goads and then pulls Tony out of his room, both of them giggling like teenagers.

The two men are about to enter the ballroom when Howard approaches his son, "Hey Tony, I just want to wish you good luck."

"Thanks, Dad," Tony grumbles through gritted teeth before heading into the ballroom, setting off a huge cheer from the guests upon announcement of his arrival.

"Watch out for him will you," Howard orders, more than asks, quietly to Rhodey.

"Of course sir," Rhodey replies professionally.

But before he could leave, "And if he were to speak to any woman for some time, tell him to come speak to me and bring the woman."

Rhodey winces and internally rolls his eyes at the man beside him. But, he remains stoic. Nodding, he enters the room, but couldn't find Tony anywhere. Sighing in frustration, Rhodey immediately starts to scan the sea of bodies for any sign of the eccentric billionaire, but it is no use. It's going to be a long night, and Rhodey needs a drink.

* * *

Tony was hoping to escape the ball without detection, but right as he entered, the DJ had to announce his entrance, and nearly everyone swarmed to talk to him. Now here he is, being squeezed to death by business moguls, women, celebrities, and other random people he barely knows, and he can't escape. Normally, this wouldn't be a problem for him, but he just isn't in the mood or headspace. Women are throwing themselves at him, relentlessly doing anything possible to get his attention.

Suddenly, one bold young woman shoves her way up to him and drags him to the dance floor. Tony is about to yank his hand back, but she holds on tightly and forces him into a slow dance right as the DJ changes the song to a slow one. The young blonde man beside the DJ then wraps his arm around the taller DJ's neck, and the two go into their own dance, completely lost to the world. So it's no surprise that the smitten DJ doesn't see Tony's death glare directed at him.

With a small smirk at all the other jealous women, the young woman tightens her hold around the young billionaire, "My name is Darla by the way."

"Nice to meet you, Darla. Uh...quick question, are you going to kidnap me or something?" Tony asks, stopping their awkward dance.

"No, silly," she then let loose a very loud laugh, drawing a lot of attention from the other guests, "Can't a girl just have a dance with her soulmate?"

"Yeah… okaaay," Tony her arms slightly tightly and forcefully gets out of her hold, "You are officially one of the craziest people I've ever met. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm leaving." Tony turns around and books it, leaving an embarrassed Darla in his wake.

After just leaving that crazy woman, he is immediately swamped by others just like her. In all his years in the spotlight, he has heard many crazy things his fangirls would promise and proclaim to him, but those couldn't compare to what he heard these women are saying. Someone even asked to do his taxes for him!

Seeing a possible exit route, Tony dashes through a group of businessmen and loses the crazy fangirls amidst the crowd of other formally dressed men. When Tony is certain that no one is following him, he makes a breaks for it. Not knowing, really, anywhere else to go, he races off to get as far away from the party as possible. He just couldn't take the pressure anymore. His father, Rhodey, businessmen, fangirls, they are all in his head, mocking and yelling at him. For the first time in his life, he is about to have a panic attack. However, at that very moment when he is about to break, he runs into someone and falls on top of that person's smaller, softer frame.

* * *

After a few minutes of loitering, Pepper decides that it's about time she joins the party and tries to find Tony. So she follows the sound of talking and music towards where she guessed is the ballroom. When she turns around a corner, she sees the one person on her mind. Tony seems to be in distress, and she wants to help him, but in his delirium, he runs into her, falling on top of her. _How ironic,_ Pepper thinks exasperatedly, remembering the last time she met Tony.

"Hey! Get off of me!" Pepper exclaims, shoving Tony off of her.

That seems to have snapped Tony out of his craze, only to leave a shaking man behind. "I'm so sorry miss. I didn't mean to run into you," he mutters shakily without looking at her, still shaking from his ordeal.

Feeling bad, Pepper places her hand on his shoulder. He tenses up at her touch, but rather than shrugging her hand off, he relaxes under her gentle touch. After several minutes of silence between them, Tony gets up from the floor and finally looks at her. Pepper is nervous and embarrassed by his intense stare, but her mask hides her blush.

Then, over his shoulder, Pepper spots a very angry Darla, along with several other women and men, looking and gossiping. Agatha is also among the group, staring daggers at her. Seeing her looking at something behind him, Tony turns around to see the crowd as well. Thinking on his feet, he grabs Pepper by her arm and drags her away from their watchful eyes, followed by flashes of cameras and phones

"Where are we going?!" Pepper asks Tony, heart pounding in her chest.

"Somewhere with a little more privacy," Tony replies, making Pepper nervous, yet excited at the same time for some reason.

* * *

Rhodey is looking all over for Tony. After he escaped from the mob of fangirls, he lost his best friend amongst the huge crowd of people. All of a sudden, a crowd started to form near the entrance, and Rhodey knew that it must be Tony. However, he couldn't get to the front, and, when he did, it's too late.

Rhodey then overhears a young woman crying to an older woman, "Who the hell was that whore!? I was way prettier than her!"

"Now, now. Calm down, sweetie," the older woman says comfortingly, "I'm sure that it was nothing. He will come back soon. But that girl did look oddly familiar."

"Yeah, I feel like I've seen her somewhere before," another young woman adds next to the older one.

"Excuse me, ladies," Rhodey approaches the three women, catching their attention, "I was wondering if you can tell me what had happened here?"

"Oh, some wench ran off with  _the_ Tony Stark," the older woman says haughtily, "Probably off to who knows where. My name is Agatha by the way, and these are my two daughters, Darla and Artemis…"

And that's how Rhodey got stuck with talking to the three women with no way out to look for his friend. He did, however, got to dance with Artemis, who isn't as bad as he had thought.

* * *

They ran for what felt like forever. Pepper tries to keep up, but her heels slowed her down. Tony doesn't seem to mind, though, and keeps going through the many hallways of the mansion. They finally stopped in front of a glass doorway leading towards a balcony. Tony slides the door open and pulls Pepper out, still not letting go of her arm.

Pepper quickly yanks her arm back, catching his attention, "I'm sorry for dragging you out here. I just couldn't stand the party."

Shyly, Pepper replies, "It's alright. Although normally, I would think of it as kidnapping and call the authorities."

Tony chuckles, and Pepper joins in. Then silence overtakes the two people, both not knowing what to say to the other, suddenly feeling so shy.

The silence ends with Tony clearing his throat and saying, "I know this may sound stupid but… do I know you from somewhere?"

He then turns his intense stare at a nervous Pepper.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! And definitely remember that you can check out this story on my FanFiction.Net account [[plug](https://www.fanfiction.net/u/5490981/dragonrider1234)] as well!
> 
> Until the next chapter! 
> 
> Peace!

**Author's Note:**

> Thoughts? Questions? Comments? Please let me know what you think! And leave a kudos if you like the story so far! Thanks for reading! Please note that tags will be added as I post these chapters!
> 
> And if you want to chat, follow me on Twitter: [@SerephinaD](https://twitter.com/SerephinaD) or Tumblr: [The Dragon Writer](https://serephinadraco.tumblr.com/)


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